do people get better by studying....

roman labs dvds. and how many poeple watch them....there up to 56 i think green volume.there good dvds about other peoples oppinions on them.GM roman dzindi..

Originally posted by lumax
roman labs dvds. and how many poeple watch them....there up to 56 i think green volume.there good dvds about other peoples oppinions on them.GM roman dzindi..

Originally posted by Bedlam
Watching dvd movies and getting better at chess have little in common, it makes people lazy to be honest.

Originally posted by jnguyen
Agreed.

DVDs are good for overviews i.e. maybe give the basic strategies and ideas to a particular opening to see if you interested in learning more. By learning more I mean getting a real BOOK and studying the games of the greats, doing exercises, and practicing. i.e. hard work.

Watching a DVD alone will probably do nothing for you.

Originally posted by wittywonka
Well, I would agree that only watching a DVD may not yield many results, but surely having a chess board in front of you, interactively keeping up with the lecture and intermittently pausing and rewinding would be roughly equivalent to reading through a book with a chessboard.

Originally posted by Bedlam
A good book contains a lot more info than any dvd.

I have some comments about both types of study but nothing conclusive.

You can learn from DVD's and if one gives you the right idea at the right time then it will be worthwhile. Although my preference is for books, if I'm tired and not up for book study then I'll be very happy with a DVD. People also have different learning styles which may be better suited to one or other medium.

The disadvantage of a DVD is that it moves forward at a pace that may be too slow for some and too quick for others. If you lose concentration in a book - or if you just didn't get something - you can just flick your eyes back to the start of the page as often as it takes. Even with a well constructed DVD menu skipping around can be a faff.

This has always been one of the limitations of DVD or TV for education. The people making the programme always have to leave a lot out. But DVD's can be very good at introducing ideas and focusing your attention onto elements that you may want to ...er...study in a book!

The random access a book affords you makes it easy to spend an age on one difficult bit and then speed up or skim something you find easier. The downside of a book is that you're possibly less likely to finish it and maybe more tempted to skip bits or even leave it completely. The necessity of setting up a board that many books require can act as a barrier to study if you're busy.

The Fritz trainer CDROMS are worth considering too. Like a DVD but with the advantage that you can click back and forth through a game relatively easily so long as you don't mind working at a screen.

I've learned from dvds more than from any book. when I see the pieces moving on a video, relevant squares highlighted and hear the explanation of a master player, it all sticks to me. but when I read the same in a book, it takes days instead of hours, and I seldom retain any of it.

however, I think anything that distracts you from hands on training, will hinder your progress. dvd or book, it doesn't matter.

I agree with wormwood.

For example, to learn endgames I read Pandolfini's endgame course, Dvoretzsky's endgame brick, and fundamental chess endings...and basically learned nothing.

It wasn't until I got Karsten Mueller's endgame DVDs from chessbase that endgames were actually presented in a way that could keep me awake for more than 10 minutes.

Originally posted by ericmittens
I agree with wormwood.

For example, to learn endgames I read Pandolfini's endgame course, Dvoretzsky's endgame brick, and fundamental chess endings...and basically learned nothing.

It wasn't until I got Karsten Mueller's endgame DVDs from chessbase that endgames were actually presented in a way that could keep me awake for more than 10 minutes.

wow i also agree with Wormwood, i watched or rather listened to a presentation of the French defence from the Swedish International master Ariel Ziegler on chessbase, and learned more from that than many books on the subject, i dunno, the media experience just seems to register more. one must remember that many good chess players are not that good at teaching, We laugh at Roman with his crazy hairdo criticising people for being lazy and not learning any openings, hes just good entertainment, Jacob Agaard i felt was a terrible teacher, nice guy but he was so disinterested giving his presentation that he made me feel apathetic, Kasparov on the queens gambit was entertaining from a historical point of view but practically useless for me anyway, International master Andrew Martin i like, he is very practical and down to earth and speaks to you on a level, the best for beginners i would have to say is the Daniel King powerplay series, a grandmaster explaining ideas in a very lucid and simple way with out being condescending, it was most refreshing, so all things having been heard, it depends on who is giving the presentation me thinks.😀